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Over the last 3 and half months, most of the blog posts that I shared revolved around the theme of Internet. The main thing that I observed is how pervasive the use of Internet has become into our daily lives, so much so that it has revolutionized the way we do things, gain information, learn and more. The impact brought about by the Internet would only expand for the better in years to come. What do you thing the internet would be like in the year 2020? Personally for me, I believe augmented reality will revolutionize the tourism industry.

We have heard of augmented reality and how great things will become. In case you have no idea what augmented reality is, explanation below might help.

However, this technology has not yet taken off as compared to technology such as tablet computer (think iPad). A few companies are still testing out the use of augmented reality in daily life and figuring ways this technology would revolutionize our lives totally such as how mobile phone and laptops have done. One example of the latest project is by Google – Project Glass.

So when or what will cause augmented reality to take off? The answer could lie in tourism. With the invention of smart phones, numerous apps have been released that promotes the use of augmented reality as part of tourism.

Aside from convenience when navigating in a foreign land, one can enjoy a unique form of vacation. With augmented reality, you can travel through time and experience a digital recreation of place and time in history. Augmented reality can enhance one’s experience through looking at real-time location with superimposed images of the past. The video below is a great example of how one can travel through time specifically how Museum of London used augmented reality for their new Modern Galleries.

While Augmented Reality in tourism is a not a fairly new concept, the idea has yet to take off. With the proliferation use of mobile phones today, it is only logical for augmented reality apps to be present in the app store or marketplace. Below is a list of best augmented reality apps that one could consider when on vacation.

While apps could/have revolutionize the way we travel in the near future, how about a GPS tour that transports you to another time? One that makes you truly experience being transported back instead of only looking at it through your phone.

The idea of augmented reality being the universal guide might change the way we travel in the future. While currently the idea has been introduced to the public, it has not been as widely used as one would expect; many still rely on books for research, bringing around a phrase book etc. In the future, we may no longer need tour guides, do heavy research, rely on travel books, learn a new language and many more as a preparation for our vacation. With Internet, a smartphone for now or maybe a new gadget in the future might be all that we need to start touring the world. Maybe a device being created that combines all the features of the apps we see today, that becomes the ultimate tour buddy?

So what predictions do you have for the Internet in the near or far future? What other aspects of our life could the Internet change? (previous entries have depicted how our lives have changed by the Internet) 🙂